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Explaining LA measure JJJ and its vision for jobs and housing
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Construction next to the Staples Center sports arena continues, spurring a flurry of construction of high-rise loft buildings nearby in Los Angeles, California.
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Housing comes up on the ballot today for Los Angeles residents in the form of Measure JJJ, and it addresses the pace of development in Southern California and what's being built.
Here's what you need to know.
What it does
There are three key pieces to this initiative:
- Most big developments with more than 10 units would have to set aside as much as 20 percent of the homes inside as subsidized housing for low-income people.
- Builders will have to make an effort to hire locals who have an address in L.A. and are unionized.
- It would create special incentives for developers who build housing near a major mass transit line.
Who's behind it
The Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, is the main backer of this law.
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Other backers include the Koreatown Immigrant Workers Alliance, SEIU and the L.A. League of Conservation Voters.
They say it will create good jobs for local Angelenos, as well as quality housing for low-income families in neighborhoods throughout the city.
Who's against it
Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce and the Building Industry Association of Southern California are among those against it.
They say these regulations will slow down the pace of development in Los Angeles, in a city that already has a housing shortage.
Where the vote stands
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Something else you should know
Mayor Eric Garcetti has said he's leaning in favor JJJ, while members of the city council are mum on the issue.
Even if Measure JJJ passes, it faces another threat in 2017: The Neighborhood Integrity Initiative. That measure, which will appear on the March 2017 ballot, proposes a two year moratorium on large, dense construction projects in Los Angeles, or until the city revamps its planning and zoning codes.
If that March initiative passes, it would put a stop to so-called "mega-developments" which Measure JJJ attempts to regulate.
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